


Can You Hear My Voice?

by Baccatapages



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Adoption, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Captain America Steve Rogers/Modern Bucky Barnes, Depression, Diana Barnes - OC, Foster Care, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kid Fic, M/M, Parent Bucky Barnes, Past Child Abuse, Protective Bucky Barnes, Some swearing/offensive language, mentioned cult
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-30
Updated: 2019-09-16
Packaged: 2019-10-17 05:03:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17553899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baccatapages/pseuds/Baccatapages
Summary: "You want me to foster a kid?""Yes, it'll be good PR.""I don't know the first thing about kids." Steve protested. "Besides, i'll be called away for missions at weird hours.""If you stay in the Avengers Tower, there'll always be someone ready to babysit." Pepper pointed out. "C'mon, Steve, what's the worst that could happen?"Steve gave a worldly sigh. "I'll try it once. If it ends terribly, i'm not doing it again.""Deal.""I'm gonna regret this."





	1. Chapter 1

"You want me to foster a kid?"

"Yes, it'll be good PR."

"I don't know the first thing about kids." Steve protested. "Besides, i'll be called away for missions at weird hours."

"If you stay in the Avengers Tower, there'll always be someone ready to babysit." Pepper pointed out. "C'mon, Steve, what's the worst that could happen?"

Steve gave a worldly sigh. "I'll try it once. If it ends terribly, i'm not doing it again."

"Deal."

"I'm gonna regret this."

 

For the hundredth time that day, Bucky cursed his ex-boss as he packed a bag for the social worker to take away along with the only good thing in his miserable life. First it was a legal battle against a woman who loved drugs more than her own fucking child, then it was his daughter getting into fights at school, then it was her lack of academic progress, then it was her wandering off during school times, usually finding her way home. The legal battle had already put Bucky on the social worker's watchlist and getting fired was exactly what they needed to take his baby girl away.

It was about half an hour until the social worker would turn up and Bucky had to fight every second to not burst into tears. Contrary to the belief, Bucky was not the gruff, fierce, moody, grumpy, savage, brutal, unsympathetic man his general appearance made him out to be. True, he was what one would call 'beefy' and perhaps he did have a metal arm which certainly didn't help matters. The lack of sleep just made his murder face more pronounced.

"Daddy?"

Bucky turned to see Diana, his daughter, standing in the doorway, rubbing her eyes with her hands. "Hi, sweetheart. Did you sleep well?" Diana shook her head. Bucky frowned in concern and scooped her into a hug, settling down into a chair. Her bottom lip trembled, green eyes swimming with unshed tears. "Was it a bad dream?" Diana burst into tears, burying her face into Bucky's chest. Her voice was muffled so he couldn't catch what she said. "I didn't quite catch that, honey." Diana leaned back, fiddling with Bucky's hair. 

"I heard Mr Boss yelling at you, said you shouldn't go into work anymore. Is it because of me?"

"No, sweetheart, of course not." Bucky said vehemently. He kept being called away from work by the school, telling him to either take Diana home, calm her down or find her. It was putting a strain on Bucky's performance and his boss snapped because Diana went down with a fever and Bucky had to stay at home. "Daddy just needed a career change."

"Why are you packing a bag? Are we going somewhere?"

Bucky felt his heart break a bit more. "Well, sweetheart, you're going to be staying with some nice people until daddy can get back onto his feet. Get another job, you know. Tidy up." He looked around at the pigsty that was their rundown apartment. 

"But I don't want to!" She protested, hugging Bucky tightly. "Don't send me away!"

"Oh, sweetheart, I don't want to send you away. I'd give anything to keep you with me." Bucky tightened his embrace a bit more. "But sometimes things have to change."

In the end, Diana went kicking and screaming,pleading for the social worker not to take her away, reaching for him.

Bucky's heart broke with every word.

 

They took Diana to the hospital. She didn't understand why until a nice nurse asked if she could check whether Diana was in full health. Diana just glared and after much poking and prodding, the nurse left. 

A few minutes later, a different social worker pulled back the curtain and stepped in with two people with her. Diana was still sat on the hospital bed that was much too big for her. "Diana, this is Mr Rogers. He'll be taking care of you for a while."

Mr Rogers was tall, taller than her daddy, with shoulders maybe as broad. He had blond hair and really dorky glasses that framed his blue eyes. He gave a nervous, sunny smile. "Hi there." Diana glowered, doing her best impersonation of whenever her daddy was angry. Unlike most people, Mr Rogers didn't recoil or back away, he just stuck out his hand in greeting. Eventually, he took it away. "Do you think you could give us a minute?" He asked the other two adults.

They left without complaint and Mr Rogers took a seat in a chair next to the bed. "You're scared, I get it. This is my first time fostering, so I guess we'll be learning together. I can tell you a bit about myself, if you like?" Diana said nothing. "Well, my full name's Steven Grant Rogers. My birthday is the fourth of July." Diana frowned skeptically. "I'm tellin' the truth, people always make fun of me because of it. Anyway, I like to draw and listen to music. What about you?"

Diana just folded her arms stubbornly. She didn't have to tell this man anything. 

"I, uh, didn't know how to decorate your room but we can get some stuff once you're settled in. The man who came with me, Happy, he can either take us home or i can get him to stop for ice cream?" Mr Rogers suggested. 

Diana knew perfectly well he was trying to bribe her for her affections but they couldn't be that easily won. All she wanted was to go home and after a moment, Diana concluded that the only way Mr Rogers would let her out of his sight was if she got him to trust her enough. "No mint chocolate chip." Diana said quietly. "It makes me ill."

Mr Rogers beamed. "What's your favourite flavour, then?"

"I like strawberry."

"I quite like vanilla."

"My daddy says that vanilla ice cream is for people who are unadventurous or old."

Mr Rogers barked a laugh. "Well, he got that right." He stood and held out a hand. "Shall we?"

 

Mr Rogers - call me Steve - was showing Diana some sketches he'd done of various people when a man dropped from the ceiling. In a flash, she was hiding behind the sofa, peering up over the back at the man brushing himself off while Mr Steve huffed angrily at him. 

"What are you doing here, Clint?"

"I heard there was a new addition to the family." The man, Clint, shrugged. "I wanted to see if it was true. Now, where is the rugrat?" When his gaze fell on Diana, she squeaked and ducked back down.

"Diana? It's okay." Mr Steve said soothingly. "Clint's a friend. An annoying friend, but a friend nonetheless."

Diana was practically trembling. The last time a man had dropped from the ceiling was when they were being attacked and her daddy lost his arm and people were shooting guns. She was lost in her own head for a while until Mr Steve's incessant soothing actually registered in Diana's mind and she crawled out from behind the sofa. The ceiling man was gone and Mr Steve actually looked worried. 

"I want my daddy." Diana said, her voice wobbling. "I want to go home!"

"I know, Diana, but-" Mr Steve reached for her, possibly to comfort her or hug her, but Diana just ran out of the communal area. She ran as fast as her legs could carry her and fell on her butt when she ran into a tall man with dark skin, an eye patch over one eye and a scary expression. At his expression, Diana burst into tears.

"Fury, did you make a child cry?" A woman's voice said. "What did you do?"

"Nothing!" The man, Fury, protested. "She just ran into me."

"Hey, kid." The woman knelt down so she was at a similar height to Diana. "My name's Nat, what's yours?"

Diana wiped her eyes. The woman was very pretty, with hair like fire. "Diana." She sniffled. "I want to go home. I want my daddy."

"C'mon, i'll make you some hot chocolate." Miss Nat hoisted Diana up and supported her on her hip, taking her into the kitchen and setting her on the counter top. Diana brought her knees up to her chin, hugging them as he watched Nat put milk into a pan. Mr Steve came in looking upset.

"I'm sorry, Diana, I know you want to go home but you can't just yet until the social worker says you can." Mr Steve said, looking at her with puppy dog eyes. "But you've got your visitor day on Saturday, so you can see your daddy then, okay?"

Saturday? That was three days away! "But... but I want to see him tomorrow." Diana protested.

"I'll see what I can do." Mr Steve sighed. 

Miss Nat's hot chocolate was really nice, very similar to the one her daddy makes whenever Diana is sick. She, Mr Steve and Miss Nat sat down and played monopoly. Mr Tony, the person who owned the building and a friend of Mr Steve and Miss Nat, joined in halfway through and ended up flipping the board because he went bankrupt which Miss Nat found hilarious.

 

"Hey doll." Steve greeted his boyfriend cheerily. They'd been dating for a few months. Normally, when they talked on the phone, Steve couldn't get a word in edgewise, but Bucky's silence worried him. "Doll?"

Bucky promptly burst into tears and Steve was sure he looked rather ridiculous, fluttering over someone who wasn't there and he couldn't physically comfort in any way. Through Bucky's hitched sobs, Steve could make out that his daughter had been taken away by social services. Bucky then went on to shout obscenities about his ex-boss.

 

The next day, more of Steve's friends came round. Mr Sam, relatively funny and played several card games with Diana. He was the one to dissuade Mr Tony from teaching Diana poker, but she thought it was pointless because her daddy had already taught her how to play poker, but she didn't tell them that. 

Miss Potts was nice, her and Miss Nat and Mr Steve taking Diana to a toy shop and letting her pick out some things. Diana also liked how Miss Potts kept Mr Tony under control. 

Mr Bruce was really nice and really smart, patiently talking her through the project he was working on.

Miss Wanda and Mr Pietro were polar opposites but they were really nice. Mr Vision was nice but very awkward around people.

Diana was well aware that Mr Steve was trying to distract her, hoping she wouldn't ask to see her daddy but she did. It was at lunchtime and Mr Sam and Mr Tony were squabbling over the last slice of pizza when Diana got down from her chair and tugged on Mr Steve's sleeve. 

"Are we going to see my daddy now?"

Mr Steve's face crumpled. "Oh, honey, the social workers wouldn't budge. They said Saturday was the only day you could see your daddy."

Diana was tempted to have a tantrum but she didn't think that would get her anywhere. Instead she just climbed back onto her seat and cried silently. 

 

Steve felt like a jerk. Seeing Diana's heartbroken expression and knowing he was the cause of it just made him feel terrible. Nat sent him a questioning look, glancing at Diana who was crying into her pizza. She nudged Bruce who didn't look happy that Diana was crying. Steve had noticed all the Avengers were simply smitten with her and Fury had practically melted when Diana went up to him and apologised, calling him Mr Nick.

The next day, Steve took Diana to school. She didn't seem very happy about going back to school and form the car, Steve noticed that Diana sat by herself on the steps, waiting for school to start. He only told Happy to drive away when the children were called into class.

Steve had a migraine by midday after dealing with the reporters trying to get statements about the whole Ultron debacle and he was ready to burst by the time FRIDAY told him that the school had called. Steve called them back and the principle requested Steve come and collect Diana.

Wearing his dorkiest outfit, Steve jogged through the school halls until he found the principle's office. Steve knocked and was told to enter. Diana was sat on a chair, swinging her legs, looking bored. She also had a black eye which made Steve's blood boil.

The principle didn't look happy as she spoke. "Mr Rogers, Diana's temporary caregiver." She gestured to a chair. "Sit."

"Why does Diana have a black eye?" Steve demanded, sitting down.

"When i was informed that Diana would be being taken care of by someone else, i'd hoped they'd have a good influence on her. Apparently not. This is her twentieth fight this month, Mr Rogers."

"I was only doing it-"

"Be quiet." The principle snapped. "Diana is on very thin ice, Mr Rogers. I pride myself on being reasonable, patient and fair but I am at the end of my tether."

"He started it!"

"It doesn't matter." The principle growled. "Fighting is not allowed, Diana. You should know by now that it is better for you to just walk away."

"Look, Diana's going through a very tough time at the moment. Her life has been uprooted and she's staying with people she barely knows. Can't you give her a break?" Steve prayed that Happy would be able to keep Tony in the car. When FRIDAY had announced the principle wanted to see Steve about Diana, Tony was present and insisted he come. 

"Fine. But only because of her situation." The principle glared at Diana who was glaring right back. "She has detention for the rest of the month." Steve stood and Diana followed. As they reached the door, the principle spoke again. "Mr Rogers? I'd implore you to punish her. Use brute force if necessary."

 

In the car, Tony looked like he was about to pop a vein. He'd obviously been listening and Happy looked nervous as Steve and Diana slid into the back of the car. "Well, she's not going to be enjoying her job much longer." Tony said through gritted teeth.

"Why?" Steve frowned.

"Because she won't have it." Tony huffed. "She'll be lucky if she gets a job with a fast-food place."

Steve simply shook his head and turned to Diana who had her arms crossed and was glaring at the back of Tony's seat. "Diana, you shouldn't fight people, you know that, right?" Diana's bottom lip quivered. 

"Why were you fighting?" Tony asked.

"Stay out of this, Tony." Steve snapped.

"He said my mama was a whore and my daddy's a faggot."

Steve's eyes widened, his expression turning murderous. How could a kid even say that? "He said what?"

"You heard me." Diana grumped. "And that was after he started bullying Ben for having leg braces."

"What's the kids name?" Tony demanded. "I'll have him expelled."

"Walter Smith, he's in 6th grade."

Steve felt his eyes bug out. "You're only in 2nd grade!"

 

Bucky was feeling pretty good about himself. It was his visiting day, he'd had a few good interviews with different places for jobs, and he'd managed to get the present Diana wanted for her birthday. 

He practically skipped out of the house and made his way to Central Park where he was meant to be meeting Diana and her foster family. Bucky got there half an hour early but he was just too excited. He'd spend the rest of the day after Diana had been taken away drowning his sorrows in cheap whiskey. The day after, Bucky had applied for ten different jobs and soon had an interview for three of them.

"DADDY!" His baby girl leaped into his arms and he hugged her tightly. 

"Мое солнышко!" Bucky stood and twirled her around, the sound of her laughter lifting a great weight in his chest. "I've missed you so much!"

"I've missed you too, daddy!" Bucky supported her on his hip and she beamed up at him. His smile dropped when he realised she had a black eye. Had-had her foster father DONE THIS? Bucky would tear him apart for hurting his sunshine! Said man was hovering a few feet away looking awkward. When the blond noticed Bucky was looking at him, he gave a smile and Bucky felt his temper flare even more. "Sweetheart, what happened to your eye? Did he hurt you?"

"It wasn't Mr Steve." Diana shook her head. "No, it was Walter Smith, the turd i told you about."

"The one in 6th grade?" Bucky frowned. "What did he do?"

"He was bullyin' Ben for having leg braces."

"And...?" 

Diana looked rather sheepish. "I told him to quit it."

"And...?"

"He said some mean stuff. Then he punched me so i punched him back."

Bucky groaned. "Sweetheart, we've talked about this."

"What? It was only fair! Things would be a lot worse if i'd pushed him down the stairs." Diana reasoned.

"Instead you punched him." Bucky shook his head and set Diana down. Then he leaned in close. "Did you at least hit him good?"

"He started crying." Diana whispered back.

Bucky couldn't help the grin that spread across his face as he straightened. Mr Steve, presumably just called Steve, wandered over with his hands buried in his pockets. "We'll meet back here at five?" He offered.

"Sounds good." Mr Steve nodded. "I'm Clint, by the way. Diana's foster dad was called away on an emergency so he asked me to drop her off." He held out a hand and Bucky shook it, resisting the urge to break the guy's hand. "Do you have any plans for today?" Clint asked politely.

"Well, we are going to fulfill our birthday tradition." Bucky said, ruffling Diana's hair. "Which includes volunteering at the pet shelter, eating pizza and ice cream while watching Disney movies and feeding the pigeons."

"Is it your birthday?" Clint looked surprised and kind of guilty.

"Nah, it's hers." Bucky said. "Well, technically, it was on Wednesday."

Diana was watching a rather fat squirrel try and drag an even bigger acorn across the grass, so she didn't notice the look of horror on Clint's face. "Daddy, look, it's really stubborn."

"Yeah it is." Bucky smiled. He wondered why Clint looked so upset. "We'll see you at 5, Mr Barton." Bucky led Diana away, listening to her constant chatter about anything and everything that had happened in the past few days.

 

"Mr Steve? Mr Steve, wake up." Steve grunted awake, feeling something prodding his cheek. Diana was there standing by his bed, eyes red and puffy. She'd thrown a massive tantrum when she realised that she wasn't going back home with Bucky, screaming and yelling at Steve. Steve had to call Bucky and get him to come and calm Diana down which took a good half hour, all the while Steve got many suspicious glares from passing parents for making Diana cry. 

"What is it? Are you okay?" Steve asked, turning the light on and sitting up.

Diana shifted her feet, looking down at them, her bottom lip quivering. "The ghosts came back."

Steve rubbed at his eyes, to check that he was actually awake. "Ghosts? Are they bad?"

"No, they're nice ghosts. They, uh, they talk to me. Sometimes they want me to find them, sometimes they want me to pass on a message, and sometimes they send out warnings." Diana said quietly. "One ghost, she was really pretty, and she told me to tell you that, uh, you can't save everyone."

"Did this ghost say what her name was?"

"Um... Carter, i think? Her name was Carter." Diana's brow furrowed in concentration. "She was really pretty, dark hair, red lipstick."

Steve felt himself choke on air. "Peggy? Peggy Carter?"

"I think so. The connection was a bit fuzzy."

"Did she say anything else?"

"Uh...that you can still learn to dance?"

Steve took a deep breath. "Diana, I don't know how you found out about Peggy but this really isn't funny. Ghosts? They don't exist, alright? I'm sure it was just a dream. And it's not nice to lie." He forced himself to not look her in the eye.

Diana glowered. After receiving a glare from Diana's dad, Steve finally knew where it came from. "I'm not lying!"

"Go back to bed, Diana." 

The girl stamped her foot. "You're the worst dad ever! You won't let me go home! You won't believe that I see ghosts! You're just like everyone else! You think i'm crazy! You think i'm dumb! You think i'm reckless! You think i'll never amount to anything because I see dead people and I hear people's thoughts and I know what people feel and I break things without touching them! And no one believes in me except my daddy and you're keeping us apart!" Diana got louder and louder with every word.

"Diana, I won't have you talking to me like that." Steve said sternly, getting out of bed. "You're stressed, I get it, but that's no reason to be disrespectful."

"I'm just speaking the truth." She huffed. "You're a bully, like everyone else. And you know what? I hate bullies."

"And that's why you got into the fight with Walter."

"I had him on the ropes!" Diana protested. 

Steve felt stunned at the words. It felt strange to hear them coming out of someone else's mouth.

"It's not my fault the words don't make sense in my head! It's not my fault that things break!" Her fists were balled, as if she was ready to take on a fully-grown super soldier. 

Steve sighed. "Go back to bed, Diana. We'll talk about this in the morning." When she didn't move, Steve snapped "Now!". Diana threw him one last glare before currying out of the room. 

 

Diana was sat cross-legged on her bed, paperclip in hand. She was focusing on trying to move it, imagining it as moving each individual atom of the paperclip, when Steve knocked on her door. "Diana? Uh, I made breakfast. I was thinking we could eat and then go to Coney Island, if you wanted?" Diana glowered at the door and said nothing, turning her attention back to the paperclip. "I want to apologise for last night, I was stressed and... I shouldn't have snapped at you."

 

"Still having trouble?" Bucky said sympathetically. They were sat in a coffee shop having another date and Steve was bemoaning about the fact that he'd just made an enemy of the person he was supposed to take care of.

"I don't get girls sometimes." Steve shook his head. "But, I mean, she just..." Steve huffed in frustration and buried his face in his hands.

"Well, my daughter often has to cool of by herself before she's ready to talk." Bucky shrugged. "Though my girl's one in a million, so maybe she ain't a good point of refeence."

Steve smiled. He loved the fact that Bucky was so devoted to his daughter even after everything his ex put them through. "A square peg in a round hole, huh?"

"You have no idea."

 

"I can't believe you yelled at her." Natasha frowned, sipping her coffee. Steve was sat at the breakfast bar, pouting into his bowl of cereal. "She's going through enough already."

"I just... It was cruel of her to play a prank about Peggy."

"What if she wasn't?" 

Steve frowned at her. "What do you mean?"

"What if she was telling the truth? Did you ever think of that?"

"Well..."

"From the sounds of it, she can do some pretty amazing things and she's scared of those abilities. They make her feel like a freak. And the only person who accepts her for who she is is the one person she's not allowed to see." Natasha shrugged. "To her, you're the bad guy."

"GUYS! GUYS!" Clint came barreling into the kitchen, a large box of party decorations in his arms. "You need to help me!"

"What's going on?" Natasha frowned.

"It was Diana's birthday on Wednesday! We have to do something!"

Steve sat up. "Why didn't she say anything?"

"She probably thought we wouldn't care." Natasha pointed out.

"We better keep it a secret from Tony, he'll go beserk-"

"Keep what a secret from me?" Tony stumbled into the kitchen looking tired.

"Uh..." Steve cleared his throat. "It was Diana's birthday on Wednesday and she didn't say anything so we-"

"OHMYGODWENEEDTODOSOMETHINGFRIDAYGETASMANYPARTYDECORATIONSASYOUCANANDGETSOMEBOARDGAMESTHATGIRLSLIKEAND GET PEPPER'S HELP!"

"...Right away, sir."

 

"So, Buck, I was wonderin' if you wanted to meet the kid i'm fostering?" Steve offered, walking hand in hand through the park. In his free hand he had an ice cream and Bucky had one too.

"I can, if you like." Bucky shrugged, looking around.

Steve stopped. "Are you okay?"

"I didn't get any of the jobs." Bucky sighed. "But i'm still looking."

"Maybe... maybe I could talk to Pepper?"

"Who's Pepper?"

"She runs Stark Industries."

Bucky's eyes widened. "What? I can't ask you to do that!"

"Buck, not having your sunshine with you is making you miserable. I'm not blind. Besides, it's no trouble." Steve smiled at Bucky who caved.

"Fine."

"Do have any notable skills?"

"Skills for outside the bedroom?"

"Yes, Buck, not bedroom skills."

"I have a PhD in bioengineering."

Steve blinked. "You kept that quiet."

"I didn't want to shove it in your face." Bucky shrugged. "Careful, your ice cream's dripping."

Steve clumsily tried to rescue his melting ice cream but failed miserably. Laughing, Bucky licked off the ice cream on Steve's nose. 

 

"Diana? Can I come in?" Steve knocked on the door. He had a feeling she wouldn't come out, but after a few moments, the door opened. Steve entered, closing the door behind him. Diana was curled up on her bed, a stuffed dragon clutched to her chest.

"My daddy always said that i'm different because my ma was bad and took pills that she shouldn't have." Diana said quietly. "That it's her fault and not mine."

"I believe you." Steve assured, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "It was cruel of me to let my emotions get in the way of my judgment."

"You're just apologising for being human." Diana looked at him. "Peggy said that you two liked each other. Like, like like."

Steve smiled. "We did."

"She also said that she was proud of you for moving on." Diana smiled. "She said you've fallen in love with another boy."

"I have. That doesn't bother you, does it?"

"Nope. Daddy swore off women after my ma, prefers to have crushes on boys, but he always says that he never regrets liking my ma because otherwise i wouldn't be in his life."

Steve felt something swell in his chest. "Diana, can I tell you a secret? But you have to promise not to tell anyone else?" She nodded. "The others found out it was your birthday on Wednesday and they've set up a big party for you. But i wasn't supposed to tell you so you have to act surprised."

"But why?" Diana frowned.

"Diana, you've got all of them wrapped around your finger. Including me." Steve insisted. He stood and held out a hand. "Shall we?"

 

"So how long have you and Cap been dating?" Tony asked, sipping on his alcohol-free drink. Pepper had insisted there be no alcohol at the party and had FRIDAY lock away all the alcohol until after the party.

"A few months." Bucky nodded. "I thought it was just a once-time thing but..." He shrugged. "Most people don't come back. They're either scared or they get chased off when i tell them i have a kid at home."

"Why would they be scared?" Tony frowned.

"Well, to quote one guy, I'm built 'like a brick-shit house'." Bucky shook his head. He was well aware that he was intimidating in both his size and appearance.

"And this metal arm..." Tony tapped Bucky's left arm. "How did you get it?"

"Well, I lost my arm in a fight against some mobsters and then me and my girl worked on it before attaching it."

Tony's eyes bugged out. "Your kid did this? Where can I find them! They must be a genius!"

Bucky smirked. "She's genius, Stark, but she's not naive. She's not going to let just anyone pick her brains."

"But really, where can I find them?"

Bucky's expression darkened. "CPS took her away."

"What?" Tony squawked. "Why?"

"I lost my job, she wasn't doing well in school, blah blah blah." Bucky sighed. 

"Come work for me!" Tony blurted. "If you can built that arm you can work for me!"

"Uh, I think Steve got me a job as Pepper's secretary-"

"Nonsense! You're wasted as a secretary!"

"Everybody, she's coming." Steve said from the doorway. He made his way over to Bucky as everyone descended into a panic, making sure everything was perfect.

 

Steve could hear Diana's footsteps as she approached and she hesitantly poked her head into the room, eyes wide. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Everyone shouted, causing Diana to jump. Steve didn't notice Bucky had frozen, but he did notice Diana's eyes fell on Steve and Bucky. Steve was honestly worried that she wouldn't take well to strangers, excepted her to retreat to her room again. He did not expect Diana to beam and sprinted at Steve and Bucky, practically shrieking "DADDYDADDYDADDY!"

Diana leaped into Bucky's arms and Bucky, rather than being uncomfortable or shocked, hugged her fiercely back. Bucky himself was babbling in rapid Russian that Steve didn't understand and he became even more lost when Diana started talking quickly in Russian too, sometimes switching to several other languages. 

Everyone was gaping at them and the father and daughter only seemed to notice when Thor clapped Bucky on the back and boomed loudly, "MY FRIENDS! YOU ARE REUNITED AT LAST!"

"Thor!"

"You knew?" 

"Steve!"

"Tony, calm down-"

"Daddy?"

"Steve, how could you not tell me?"

"Are we ever going to cut the cake?"

"Shut it, Barton."

"SHUT IT!" Bucky hollered at the top of his lungs causing everyone to fall silent. Diana whined and pressed her face into his shoulder. "I'm guessing that Steve didn't know he was fostering my daughter and I had no idea he was fostering Diana."

Steve blushed and scratched the back of his neck. "I thought it was a different Diana."

"Daddy?" Diana said in a quiet voice. "Daddy, she's coming."

"Who's coming?" Sam frowned.

Bucky gritted his teeth. "You're sure?"

Diana nodded. "And she's got a lower with her."

"Lower?"

"Lawyer." Bucky corrected gently. 

"Sorry, what's going on?"

"Diana's mother, Ana, must've found out somehow that Diana's in foster care. I'm guessing she wants to get custody of her." Bucky shuddered at the prospect.

"I'm getting my lawyers, her mother's not going to touch her." Tony said, stalking off to go call his lawyers, presumably. 

"Is her mother that bad?" Natasha asked.

Bucky turned to Diana. "Sweetheart, why don't you go with Thor and draw some pictures?"

Diana said something in a weird language and Bucky nodded. "Okay, Daddy." She hopped out of Bucky's arms and went over to Thor, taking his hand. "Come on, Mr Thor, come help me draw a unicorn for Mr Loki."She dragged him away and Bucky turned to the other Avengers.

"Ana is the daughter of a very powerful man who runs a cult and I didn't realise until we were together and Ana was expecting. The cult put her through all sorts of crazy tests... gave her freaky substances...and when Diana was born, I took her away and we hid for a while, always moving around. Until they caught up with us and they fought to get her back but we got rid of them."

"You lost your arm in the process." Wanda concluded.

"They've left us alone but I suppose if Ana can't take Diana by force, she'll take her by legal means." Bucky said, Steve squeezing his hand reassuringly.

"Why do they want Diana so badly?" Pietro asked.

"When Diana was born, some cult priests or crones or fortune tellers or whatever prophesised that Diana would bring the world to its knees." Bucky sighed. "That she was their messiah or some shit."

"How did Diana know that Ana was coming for her?"

"Diana can see flashes of the future. Often they're major events but she can't predict the weather or anything." Bucky explained. "She's also a medium, she sees and speaks to ghosts."

"And a telekinetic." Steve finished. Bucky looked at Steve, squinting at him.

"How did you know that?"

"She mentioned that, uh, things break would her touching them."

"Huh. Well, yes, she is a telekinetic but she doesn't have much control. I dread to think what they'll make her do if they get their hands on her."

 

When Bucky saw Ana again, he felt like he couldn't breath. His chest felt like it was being constricted and he instinctively held Diana closer to him. When Bucky was called to answer some questions, he passed Diana to Steve. He half expected Diana to kick up a fuss, but she just continued to quietly play with her stuffed dragon. 

"Mr Barnes, why did you deem it necessary to take Diana away from her mother?"

"Well, Ana was part of a cult and they were intending to use her as a... a weapon of sorts."

"And you think you are the best candidate to take care of Diana?"

"I know i'm not perfect but I try to give her what she needs."

"Mr Barnes, you are being charged with kidnapping and physical assault on a group of these cultists. I am going to need more than that."

"Diana is one of the only good things in my life. If I didn't have her, i'd probably be dead by now."

The jury didn't seem particularly satisfied, but they let Bucky sit back down and the judge asked Matt Murdock, the defense attorney, whether Diana would be prepared to speak. "Oh, no, my client shouldn't be involved-" Diana hopped to her feet and moved so she could tug on Matt's hand. He bent down to listen as she whispered something. Matt cleared his throat and straightened his back. "Miss Barnes is prepared to speak." Matt guided her to the stand and Diana had to stand on a stool so she could see over it. "Thank you, Mr Matt." Diana said. Matt blushed and stepped back.

"Diana, tell me what life is like living with your father."

"Well, the other girls at school call me weird but daddy says that they're just jealous that i have a more active imagination than them."

"Could you give us an example?"

"Well, every Sunday we go out to the coast and feed Bobby the fish a marmite sandwich and one day we were out of marmite so I asked my daddy what I could give him instead and he said tuna! I can't give Bobby tuna! That's... that's just cruel! I'd be a monster! So we were late for school because we had to go get marmite." Diana said, nodding sagely. 

"And feeding Bobby the, uh, fish is important why?"

"Bobby controls the weather."

"Ah, alright, moving on. So your father accepts your quirks and embraces them."

Diana frowned. "That's what i just said."

"And how would you describe your relationship with your mother?"

"Um... well, after she stole me, she put me in a cage while she waited for her friends to turn up so i don't really want to go back there."

"She put you in a cage?"

"Yeah. Then my daddy turned up and saved me!" Diana beamed at Bucky who smiled back.

Other people were called to be asked questions, Steve and Pepper, Ana and a few others. When the judge came back in, Bucky found he was holding Diana tightly, heart thumping madly. "Mr Barnes will retain full custody of Diana Barnes." The judge announced. "And Ana Ivanov will serve in prison for life on the grounds of child abuse, several accounts of murder, drug trafficking, assault and abusing a partner."

 

Bucky stood in the communal room, Diana braced on his hip. "Well, I guess..." He trailed off. All of the Avengers looked bereft that Diana was finally leaving them. Said child was passed out in Bucky's arms, all the excitement tiring her out. "Movie night is on Fridays and if you come, you're expected to bring a contribution. 7pm sharp, guys, remember that." 

"We wouldn't miss it for the world." Clint grinned.

"Steve, are you going with them?" Tony asked, looking at the bag Steve had over his shoulder.

"Yeah, just to help them get settled in. I'll be going back to my own apartment after." Steve shrugged. "See you guys later."

 

"Diana? This is Peter, do you think he could play with you?" Miss Smith asked, a small boy hidden behind her legs.

Diana smiled. "Sure, i'm drawing some pictures for my daddy's special friend."

Peter sat down next to her, fidgeting. "I don't actually know how to draw." He admitted, cheeks pink.

"I can show you!"

Peter beamed. 


	2. Someone Holds Me (Safe And Warm)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Daddy, Peter says mermaids are better than pirates.” Diana pouted. “What do you think?”
> 
> Bucky hummed. “Well, I think mermaids are just as good as pirates.”
> 
> “I wanted to be a dragon but Peter said they were too cool.”
> 
> Peter shrugged, waving the wand in a blasé fashion. “I was speakin’ the twuth.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw: non-graphic child abuse mentioned

“Diana’s report card came today.” Bucky said, chopping some carrots. Steve looked up from where he was filling in a report from his most recent mission.

“Did she do well?”

“I don’t know, I wanted to wait until after dinner to look over it with her.” Bucky shrugged. “And don’t go snooping for it, Steve.”

The supersoldier froze, halfway out of his seat. “I wasn’t going to do anything!”

“Sit back down.”

Steve sat, looking bashful. “Aw c’mon, Buck, let me take a peek!”

Bucky turned and waved the knife in his hand threateningly. “No, Steven Grant Rogers. And don’t you wave those puppy dog eyes at me.” He harrumphed and turned back to dicing onions.

“Where is Diana, anyway?”

“Playing pirates and mermaids with Peter.”

As if on cue, Diana scuttled in, dragging Peter along with her. Steve grinned at the sight; Diana had somehow stolen Steve’s cowl from his uniform and was waving a blunt wooden sword, while Peter had his underwear on his head, a pink tutu around his waist and was grasping a fluffy fairy wand. Steve sneakily snapped a few pictures and sent them to Bucky’s phone.

“Daddy, Peter says mermaids are better than pirates.” Diana pouted. “What do you think?”

Bucky hummed. “Well, I think mermaids are just as good as pirates.”

“I wanted to be a dragon but Peter said they were too cool.”

Peter shrugged, waving the wand in a blasé fashion. “I was speakin’ the twuth.”

 

Bucky sent Steve to go get Diana and Peter as dinner was ready but he found the pair asleep together, a tangle of limbs. “Diana?” Steve said quietly, shaking her gently. Her big green eyes blinked sleepily at him.

“I thought you’d be scarier. They said you were scary. I guess you’re meant to be. People fear the next age if it comes too soon.” Diana yawned and sat up, holding her arms out. Steve scooped her up just as Peter stirred.

The pair were subdued during dinner, so much so that Bucky looked at his daughter and her best friend curiously and with worry. When Peter’s aunt, May, came to pick him up, Bucky cradled his daughter close and the three of them sat down on the sofa.

“Is something wrong, honey?” Bucky asked, combing his fingers through her hair.

“No daddy.” Diana curled up tight in Bucky’s lap. “Just tired.”

“Your report card came in the post today.” Bucky said. “It’s over there.” He nodded to the mantle piece. Steve took the cue and got up to get it.

“Do we have to read it?” Diana frowned.

“I’m sure it’s fine.”

Steve sat back down and handed the envelope to Bucky. He watched his boyfriend’s eyes scan the report. Diana had her face buried in his chest, evidently dreading whatever was on that piece of paper.

“What does it say?” Steve asked.

Bucky silently thrust the report into Steve’s hand. He squinted down at it.

**_ Student name _ ** _: Diana Rebecca Barnes_

_Subjects:_

**_ English _ ** _– A_

**_ Mathematics _ ** _– A+_

**_ Science _ ** _– A+_

**_ History _ ** _– A+_

**_ P.E. _ ** _– A_

**_ Music _ ** _– A+_

**_ French _ ** _\- A_

**_ Final Grade _ ** _– A+_

**_ Remarks _ ** _– Exceeding academically, exceptionally talented in science and mathematics. Disquiet and unsettled in class, possible cause for concern._

**_ Notes from the school nurse _ ** _– Losing weight, guardian to be notified._

 

By the time Steve had put Diana to bed, Bucky was already tearing his hair out.

“What did I do wrong, Stevie? Why am I such a failure of a father that I can’t even help her grow right?” Bucky kicked the bedframe angrily. “Diana never comes home with any leftover food! What, is she just throwing it all away? Does she not like the food? Why-“

“James Buchanan Barnes.” Steve wrapped his arms firmly around Bucky despite the man’s wriggling. “You are the best father I’ve ever seen. Diana adores you, I adore you. You have done nothing wrong, I promise.” Bucky relented and buried his face into Steve’s collar. Steve grunted slightly at the entire weight of the man but guided him to the bed.

“But why-why wouldn’t she tell me?” Bucky’s voice was heartbreakingly small.

Steve wiped away some tears. “You know how she is. We just need to talk to her, okay? And if she won’t talk to us, maybe she’ll talk to Sam.”

Bucky’s face crumpled. “I’m a failure, Steve. How could I not notice? I’m her dad, I see her every day. I know her better than anyone.”

“I don’t think even Diana knows herself.” Steve said gently. “But whatever she’d doing probably makes perfect sense to her.”

Steve couldn’t help but notice that Bucky and Diana shared the same pout as Bucky crawled under the covers, fully clothed, and promptly hogged all of them. It was what he did whenever he was upset about something, usually something Steve didn’t know how to solve.

He got up and left, with the promise of making hot chocolate. Steve dialled Sam’s number and breathed a sigh of relief when he picked up.

“Hey Steve.”

“Hi Sam, I’ve, uh, got a problem that I’d like your help with.”

There was some rustling before Sam replied. “Okay, shoot.”

“It’s about Diana.”

“Is she okay?”

“Well, her school report came today and the school nurse said she was losing weight.” Steve said. Sam was silent. “Buck says that she never comes home with any leftovers in her lunch box so he’s really confused.”

“Do you want me to talk to Bucky or to Diana?”

“Diana. Buck and I are gonna talk to her tomorrow, try and find out why. You can come over for dinner tomorrow night, talk to her then.”

“Okay, I can do that.”

“You’re a lifesaver.”

“I know. And I expect Barnes’ fudge brownies.”

“Duly noted.”

Steve had just hung up when he felt a pair of eyes on him. He turned to see Diana watching him from the doorway. She was wearing one of Bucky’s t-shirts that came down to her knees and Steve’s cowl from his uniform. “What are you doing up?” Steve asked, tucking his phone into his pocket. Diana waddled over to him and he picked her up. “Wanna help me make your daddy some hot chocolate?”

Diana nodded and Steve took her to the kitchen. He set her down on one of the worktops and got to work. “Steve?”

“Hmm?”

“Who’s your bestest friend?”

“Huh. Well, I’d have to say Sam.”

“Was he your bestest friend before you slept in the cold?”

Steve blinked. “No, no he wasn’t.”

“Will he always be your bestest friend?”

“Maybe. Who’s to say?”

Diana was silent for a while and Steve was nearly done with the hot chocolate when she spoke again. “He’ll say yes, if you ask him. He can’t fly unless you push him.”

“What do you mean?” Steve frowned.

The girl simply shrugged.

 

They couldn’t get much out of Diana, no matter how hard they tried. Bucky was understandably agitated by the time Sam arrived. Lucky for Sam, whenever Bucky got agitated, he cooked. Or baked.

Steve watched as Sam sat Diana down and started talking to her. Steve decided to occupy himself and started icing the cupcakes Bucky made.

 

Sam pulled Bucky aside after dinner while Steve challenged Diana to a Mario kart tournament on the wii. “So, what’s going on?” Bucky demanded.

“Diana’s friend, Peter.” Sam began. “He-“

“Ohmygodishebullyingher?Ishestealingherfood?Whywouldshebefriendswithhimifhe-“

“Barnes.”

“-keepsstealingherfood?Andwhywouldn’tshetellme?Doesshenottrustme?Why-“

“Barnes!”

“-amisuchafailure?Whatif-“

“BARNES!”

Bucky’s mouth clicked shut. Sam pinched the bridge of his nose then opened his arms, bracing himself for the crying man.

Sam had spoken to Bucky several times about his fears and insecurities and found that he was a lot more fragile than he let on. He was also a nervous wreck, though he managed to hide it from Diana and most people.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Bucky pulled away, grapping a piece of kitchen roll and blowing his nose.

“Anyway. Peter. It was hard to tell the extent of what was going on with him, but she said several things. ‘His heart cries but no one listens’, being one of them.” Sam pursed his lips. “I also think that Peter’s not eating nearly enough, hence that’s where Diana’s lunch goes.”

“Why wouldn’t he be eating enough?”

“I don’t think his aunt and uncle treat him very well.”

“Oh.”

“Diana even asked me whether ‘Uncle Tony’ and ‘Auntie Pepper’ wanted to start a family.” Sam could almost see the dawning realisation on Bucky’s face.

 

Bucky reached over and took Steve’s hand, leaning his head on his shoulder as they watched the kids at Peter’s birthday party play pass the parcel. Diana sat on Peter’s right and the other kids helped form the ring while Happy manned the music player.

He spotted Tony and Rhodey trying to smuggle Peter’s birthday present into the room without anyone noticing while Pepper chatted with some of the other mothers.

Peter no longer had to suffer under his aunt and uncle. Tony and Pepper adored Peter from the first moment, adopting him immediately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A snippet into the life of Bucky and Diana Barnes

**Author's Note:**

> Мое солнышко! - Moye solnyshko! - My sunshine!


End file.
